Magic Thief
by DeeDoo
Summary: Xena has the potential to be a thief, but she doesn't want to be one. And without knowing it, she's slowly stealing someone's heart. [BraixenxFrogadier] Yes, I know it's a strange pairing, but give it a try.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** No, don't even _ask_ me why I've been gone. I just suddenly got a new idea, okay? Okay. Done. Read on.

Weird pairings? Yup. I like StarterxStarter, but I can't imagine having to pair up Chespin's evolutionary line with any of the starters, so BraixenxFrogadier it is. It's a weird pairing, but you know what? Shut up.

Also, Magician is the Hidden Ability of the Fennekin evolutionary line. When the target is hit with the move, the user (who has Magician) will get the target's item. And this is Klefki's hidden ability too.

This is on an island that is created by me: Mystaria.

So welcome and enjoy.

* * *

The Braixen panted, running through the flowers as she heard footsteps behind her. _No. Don't catch me. I won't be worth your time. _She reached the river and blinked. Turning her head slightly, she saw the Houndoom stepping cautiously after her. It thought it was stealthy enough. But the Braixen was sharper than anything could ever be.

She turned and leapt to the other side of the river, when she saw a rafflesia right beside her. She whipped out the twig from her bushy tail and prepared to fling any attack on it when a familiar voice called out. "Hey! Xena! It's only me!"

The Braixen named Xena blinked. "Oh, it's you, Ria." She set back her stick on her tail. Ria the Vileplume huffily stood up. "Sorry. I was running away from the Houndoom. He's after me again. Me, the Ultimate Thief..."

Ria looked at her best friend in sadness. "You aren't the Ultimate Thief intentionally..."

Xena had been born with the special Hidden Ability: Magician. She hated it. She didn't want to take what wasn't hers, if it wasn't a gift. Xena sighed, shaking her head, looking away. Ria always said it wasn't her own fault, but Xena never believed her.

"Whatever. Stupid Houndoom can't come over anyway. C'mon, Ria. Let's head over there." Xena turned over to a small wooden hut that was her home. Her parents were out currently, and they were very busy. She had one baby sister, a Fennekin, named Candice. But Candice liked huddling up in her room.

"Why does your house have no doors inside? The only door is the front door," Ria said, skipping along as Xena walked calmly over to her hut.

"There's no need for doors."

"There are toilets."

"The only male in the house is Papa, and he usually takes baths very late. Plus, the bathrooms are in our rooms, not in the hallways, so Papa won't chance upon us bathing. And yes, we have our own rooms."

"I _know_ that, Xena." The Braixen turned to glare at her best friend. "Oh, roses! I have something on! Roses! So many freaking roses! I'm so sorry, Xena, but I have to go babysit my brother!" Ria panicked.

"It's all right. Why do you use roses as a swear word again?"

"Because they smell so good! Gotta go, Xena! Don't forget to get a mate while I'm gone!"

Xena growled as the Vileplume skittered off. Ria had been telling Xena to get a boyfriend—because Xena was extremely gorgeous, according to her best friend. But Xena didn't _want_ one.

Angered, Xena yanked out her stick, friction setting the twig alight. She shot an Ember at a patch of amaryllises—her favorite flowers, but she didn't care. She watched them burn and glared at the burning flowers in agitation. _Stupid Ria. Don't tell me what to do!_

"Excuse me."

Xena snapped out of her anger and saw a Frogadier standing in front of her. "Um... yes?" she asked politely.

The Frogadier made a strange sound. "You burned my patch of amaryllises, Miss."

_It belonged to someone?_ Sheepishly, Xena folded her arms. "I-I'm sorry. Uh..."

"No, it's fine, Miss. I just don't want you to go around burning random flowers. Some other owners of them might not be as kind as me, and you might get into trouble," the Frogadier replied.

"Oh. Well. Thank you very much. My name is Xena. What might be your name?" This was a nice Frogadier. If she knew his name, then she would remember his kindness.

"The name's Ford. You have a very nice name, Miss Xena."

A faint pink splashed over Xena's cheeks. "Oh, u-uh... thank you, Ford. And Xena is just fine."

Ford blinked and nodded. "All right, Xena. I live just there, by the way."

Xena turned to see a familiar-looking hut.

_Oh._

_He's been my neighbor for all these years... and I didn't know!_

"You're my _neighbor_?" It spilled out of her before Xena could control it. The Braixen blinked, and covered her mouth with her paw. "Oh, I mean—"

"Yes, I know you're my neighbor," Ford replied, cutting her off. "I've seen you a lot of times before, but I never thought that you'd... oh, never mind me, will you? You're very pretty, by the way, Xena."

The faint pink excelled to a firm pink. "Thank you very much..." she muttered quietly. Why did everybody say that about her?

...But somehow, hearing that from him... made her believe it.

Ford clicked his tongue. "Then I'll see you around, Xena. I'll have to replace those amaryllises."

Xena turned to burnt amaryllises. The fire had stopped, but they were absolutely black. It looked as if if you touched it, it would just break into ash.

"I'm sor—"

"Don't apologize, Xena. I already said it's fine."

Xena blinked at Ford stupidly. (She had never recalled being so stupid. _In her entire life_.) "Oh. You did? Oh... you did. All right, I won't apologize anymore, Ford."

"Good," Ford said happily. "See you around, Xena."

As Ford hopped off, Xena placed a hand on her chest. Her heart had begun beating rapidly.

_Why is it beating so fast?_

It began to slow down already, but the period Ford was around...

_I don't think I'm having a disease or anything._

But...

_If that's not it, then what is it?_


	2. Chapter 2

Quietly pawing the ground, Xena stared in front of the ground she was sitting on, legs crossed.

Two weeks.

Two weeks since she had met... him.

They met every day after that, and Xena's heart still pounded wildly the same way it did when she first met him. She never knew what it was—she didn't think it was very important, anyway. She tried to ignore it and have a conversation with Ford, but, well... it was hard.

_Pit, pat._

She was waiting for him to come out. He liked the rain. She didn't, but if it meant meeting him, then she would be highly glad to do so.

_Pit, pat._

But she had been waiting for twenty minutes. Was he really coming out?

_Pit, pat._

Maybe not. _He never promised that he's always come out, anyway..._

_Pit, pat._

Standing up again, Xena shook her wet fur, just to have it get wet again. Growling angrily, Xena tossed her head and turned back to her house. She didn't have the courage to knock on Ford's door, anyway. She might as well go home if he didn't want to see her!

...Why did she even want to see him?

Xena dismissed the thought quickly.

She stepped on the porch, placed a paw on the door, but before she opened it, a voice called out.

"Ooh... who's that pretty one over there?"

Xena whirled around, seeing a Seviper slither towards her. She stepped backwards cautiously. "Who are you?"

The Seviper hissed. "Don't struggle..."

The next minute, Xena sent him flying with a Psychic. She slammed open the door and ran inside, looking for her parents. They would end this creepy Seviper. She pushed open their bedroom door and jumped to where they were sitting down and writing something.

Her mother looked at her in surprise. "Xena, darling, what happened—"

"Someone—a Seviper—" Xena couldn't decide on what to say, but the Seviper had already slithered in anyway.

"You left the front door op—ahh... I can see why you did that... sneaky little fox..." the Seviper hissed.

"Viper!" Xena's mother growled, shooting to her feet. "Mystaria's infamous womanizer... you're not going to get our daughter, are you?"

"Of course I am..." Viper chuckled. "I'll bring _both_ of you on... if you refuse... to let me have her..."

Xena pushed herself into a corner. Her father growled. "Silly Viper. Do you think we'll let you?"

It happened all so fast. Suddenly, Viper was on the floor, panting and gasping for air. Xena blinked. _Eh?_ Her parents were _this_ strong? She had such a long way to go, then. Well, it probably didn't help that Xena refused to evolve. She thought Delphox weren't as charming as Braixen.

"Oh gosh... thanks..." Xena breathed. "That was... uhm, scary."

"I know—don't let him get you, darling," her mother told her. "He'll use his infamous Attract—it's foolproof, unfortunately. But it doesn't work against a male, so you can keep one of them close to you. About time you got a mate, anyway."

Xena stared at the floor moodily. A male? She'd _definitely_ have to meet up with Ford, then. She didn't like depending on others, but... well, it had to be done. She ran past Viper, and out of the house, into the rain again.

"Xena!"

The Braixen spun around, and beamed brightly. "Ford!" she breathed, running over and crushing him into a hug. Ford choked into her uncharacteristic action. "I was so worried you wouldn't show up..."

Ford blinked and pushed her away slightly. "You were _waiting_ for me? _In the rain_?"

Xena nodded blankly. "Yes..."

The Frogadier sighed. "You silly... you don't like the rain and you..." He couldn't find the right words. "Why would you bother waiting for me, anyway, Xena? I can find you on my own, you know."

Xena smiled. "I don't want to put you through all that trouble—but I'm glad to see you! You know, Viper made a move on me, but I used Psychic on him—must've hurt for him, but I don't care—then I ran to my parents, and he was _gone_, just like that! It was amazing, Ford!"

"Viper... made a move on you?"

Ford's eyes seemed to rapidly darken. Xena stared at him and nodded uncertainly. "Uh... yeah..."

He turned away, as if thinking. Xena waited uncertainly. He looked back at her, and shook his head.

"Never mind, Xena. Just be more careful. You don't want to end up as a victim."

"Of course I don't! I won't let him, anyway!" Xena giggled. "I was thinking if you'd like to come to the stream with me!"

"In the rain?"

"Yeah! I'll be fine! I don't like the rain, but it's not harmful to me!" Xena motioned for him to follow her and danced towards the stream. Ford followed her. As Xena made her way to the stream, she thought to herself... about many questions she herself couldn't answer.

_Why am I so uncharacteristic around him?_

_Why has it been two weeks and I have yet to discover anything?_

_Why is it only with him that I feel this way?_

Stupidly enough, Xena hadn't noticed she was already at the stream, and fell _right into the water_. Letting out a shrill shriek, Xena hit the water surface and sunk below. Ford dove in after her immediately.

_I'm an idiot!_ Xena screamed in her head. _And I can't swim!_

The stream wasn't deep, but Xena probably couldn't get back up anyway. She hit the bottom, and tried to keep in as much oxygen as she could. She just had to survive as long as she could. And that was fine.

And, she couldn't see a _thing_ underneath here. The trees all shaded the sunlight, so there wasn't any light for her to see.

Suddenly, something curled around her waist. Xena blinked, and she was being carried out of the water. Slowly, but steadily, out, out, and out... until that creature brought her out of the stream. Spluttering, Xena turned to her savior.

"F-Ford!"

"You silly..." Ford said in a disapproving tone, setting Xena down on the grass again. "Watch where you're going."

_Ford saved me._

Heat rose to Xena's cheeks as she stared blankly at Ford. She couldn't say anything. She just stood there, completely drenched, watching as Ford waited for her reply.

_This feeling..._

"Xena?"

_It can't be._

"Are you all right?"

Snapping out of her daydream-like state, Xena nodded. "Yes! I'm all right! Thank you very much, Ford!"

_So that's why it took me so long to figure it out._

"Then stop staring."

_Because I've never experienced it before._

Playfully, the Frogadier shot a Water Gun at her. Shrieking in retaliation, Xena let out a weak Ember, so she wouldn't hurt Ford too much.

_It's because I love him._


	3. Chapter 3

If anything, Xena found it relatively surprising she liked someone—someone at _all_, and a Frogadier to top it off. (She wasn't very fond of frogs, you know.) She was the type of person who could find something to complain about all the time—the Complain Queen, some people might say. The Braixen simply ignored what everyone said—after all, it was too bad for _them_ if they couldn't find anything to complain about. Her mother had once said it was "unhealthy" to be unsatisfied with life all the time and should learn to "appreciate" what she had currently, and say that Xena was simply jealous of what other people had they she didn't. Well, Xena wouldn't deny that she got jealous—_a lot_—but she wasn't about to listen to this unhealthy being unsatisfied and appreciate what she had and... all that crap. (Simply admitting the fact that she got jealous was actually a great feat for many Pokemon.) She liked complaining, and hating people because of what and complained about, and that was that. Three examples:

The female Flygon. Xena hated her for being so strong and able to cut through iron effortlessly. Her name was Edolie... or something like that.

The male Lapras. Xena hated him for helping humans and helping them across large bodies of water. Name? Mather? Something like that.

The female Azumarill. Xena hated her for having that sharp hearing and knowing the latest gossip and having observant eyes. Her name was something silly like Zuzure, or something else silly.

Well, whatever.

The thing was, Xena was trying to find something to complain and hate about Ford. Yes, Ford. If her love kept up, she'd continue looking like a miserable fool to everyone. If she found something to hate and complain about Ford, then she didn't have to bother about loving him anymore. And then she could go back to her normal life, being chased by a Houndoom because of her ability to steal and nearly accidentally attacking Ria. And that would be lovely.

Well, if she hadn't burnt Ford's amaryllises, she wouldn't have fallen for him. So, it was technically _her_ fault. And because of that, she found it hard to go around hating Ford, because it was simply her fault. What made it worse was that Ford was forgiving and didn't _mind_ the fact that she burnt his amaryllises down to nothing. Plus, it was hard to find Ford a "hate factor" because, in Xena's eyes, he was basically perfect.

She went to do what _most_ (not all, mind you) females would do—talk to one of their closest friends.

"You're trying to find a _hate factor_ on your _crush_?" Ria squinted at her best friend, wondering, for a split second, if the Braixen was truly sane or not. She decided not to question it further, because she'd probably never get the answer.

"Yes," Xena said airily, in such a manner that told the Vileplume that _she didn't care_. "I don't want to love him, but I don't know what to hate him for."

"Well, Xena," Ria began, trying to find some fancy-sounding phrases and sentences that would (hopefully) make her friend buy it, "you probably can't hate him, judging your preferences, and the way he... uh... acts to you." And that was an incredibly difficult task, as Ria was all for simple lines.

"What do you mean?" Xena asked, peering curiously at the Vileplume, seemingly interested. "You're saying I _can't_ hate him... because of my preferences of the way he acts to me? What do you mean?"

Ria shrugged. "Well... everyone has their preferences, you know. I presume... that you simply like the way he treats you. Therefore, you can't find anything to hate him for."

"...So what do you suggest I do, then?"

"Just forget about the whole trying-to-hate-my-crush thing, because that's just impossible! I mean... if it _were_ possible... you'd find something soon, right? If you're still persistent, why not you try observing him? You might be able to find something you can hate him for."

Xena's head snapped up. "Good idea, Ria!"

The Vileplume sniffed. "I don't think it'll work, though—"

The Braixen had already disappeared.

* * *

Sitting on top of a branch, clutching the stem of the tree to ensure that even if the branch snapped under her weight, she still had a chance of holding on to the tree, Xena watched Ford water the new amaryllises with a gentle Water Gun. Xena wondered why he even did plant flowers—usually Grass-types did that, after all. For a Water-type to do that, it was simply the strangest.

_No "hate factor" yet._ Much to Xena's dismay, though.

...So, what if she couldn't hate him? Would she be living this life forever and ever? Xena clenched her teeth. _No, I'll find one—I know I'll find one!_

A Roselia hopped along the path, near the Frogadier. She turned to the Frogadier and beamed brightly at him. "Hi, Ford!"

Ford jumped to see the Roselia, and then nodded, acknowledging her presence. "Hello, Rose."

Such a simple—and common—name for a Roselia: Rose. Ria would definitely make an enemy out of this one. Curious, Xena leaned forward. So this Rose knew Ford? How come she had never seen Rose, for the time that she had spent time with Ford?

"Planting amaryllises, Ford?" Rose smiled. "I thought you would've liked planting roses..."

"No, I don't. Why?" Ford asked.

Rose's crush on Ford was so obvious. Xena snickered from the tree branch, and when she heard a snapping found, swiftly jumped to another branch, that did not suit her as much, but it would have to do.

"Oh well... are you planting those amaryllises for someone?" Rose asked dreamily.

"Maybe."

And Ford's dislike for Rose was as obvious as Rose's crush on Ford. Xena would have burst out laughing if she hadn't known she had to control her laughter, lest she be caught.

Rose was unsatisfied. "So? Is it for someone or not? If it is, then who is it for?"

Ford was annoyed. "You can stop bugging me about it, because I'm not going to answer those questions."

And... the Roselia either was oblivious to his hate for her, or she just ignored it. "You're so mean, Ford!" Rose exclaimed dramatically, folding her arms and turning her head to the side. "Hmph!" With that, she left, but Xena had a feeling Rose would return again... someday.

Unable to find something Xena would call "hate factors" on Ford, she slid down from the tree carefully, then darted away before Ford noticed her.

She did notice how Ford treated her and Rose _much_ differently. She liked how Ford treated her... but the question was:

Why would he treat her differently?


	4. Chapter 4

A quiet sigh escaped the Braixen's lips as she flopped over the cute table that resembled a tree trunk. Obviously not one, but just resembling one, and crafted in such a way that it looks really like one. It was too short for Xena, but just right for Ria, being a Vileplume. Lazily, the Fox Pokemon grabbed the yellow pen and drew something that in a strange way, resembled a very distorted chicken. Then, in her best effort, she took the red pen and neatly drew a vixen next to it. The vixen appeared to be shredding the chicken to bits, explaining why so little effort was put in while drawing the chicken. Xena smiled at the picture.

_Rose would be the chicken._

Ria looked at the drawn picture and sighed, rolling her eyes. Again, her best friend was daydreaming.

_I would be the vixen._

The center of Ria's rafflesia bubbled. Xena, too caught up in her daydreaming, didn't notice it.

_The prey and the predator..?_

While Xena admired her drawing, Ria shot out a vicious, bubbling Sludge Bomb. Xena's head snapped up, reacting to the gurgling sound of the poison, and blasted it away with her own Psychic. Ria ducked, dodging the splattering acid that shortly disappeared after being blown away by the Braixen's Psychic. Growling softly, Xena folded her arms and turned her head away in arrogance, snorting.

"What was _that_ for?" the Braixen asked in her most demanding voice.

"You were daydreaming," Ria said shortly. "You said you'd try and create a list on what to hate Ford on. That's what _you_ said, at least."

"Yes, I _did_ say that, Ria. But I never said to spit some Sludge Bomb at me. I said to call my name if I wasn't paying attention!" Xena snapped heatedly, glaring back down on the Vileplume in a non-serious manner. The Flower Pokemon returned it with a release of very stinky and unwanted air. "_Ugh_! Ria!"

"I called your name four times, Xena," Ria said shortly. "You wouldn't pay attention, though."

"It smells like you _farted_, Ria! Absorb it back in!"

"I can't do that."

"Argh!" Xena covered her snout with her paw, threw open the door and darted out.

Ria, blinking from inside of her house, called out, "Close the door next time!"

The Vileplume only wanted the Braixen to realize that she couldn't hate her crush, after all.

* * *

"Stupid damned Vileplume... aren't best friends supposed to be supportive? Not shooting out some foul air in the same room..." Xena muttered, taking in fresh air—and treating it like it was a gift from Arceus. "I suppose she's my best friend, but just not the typical best friends _most_ people have..."

"Hello!" a cheery voice greeted from behind her. Xena, irritated, turned around and saw Zuzure—that one Azumarill who knew everything that happened in the village. "You must be Xena! Aren't you?"

"Yes," Xena replied shortly. As she mentioned sometime ago, she didn't hold a liking for this Azumarill. "If there's nothing you need to tell me, then please, with all due respect, leave me alone. I am, in fact, needing some privacy."

Zuzure tipped her head to her right, smiling. "But I can help you!" Now curious, Xena blinked at the Azumarill. "You see, I overheard from a conversation between you and Ria—well, I think it's Ria, it sounded like her—and I heard that you like Ford—"

Xena cut her off. "Why were you eavesdropping?!"

The Azumarill made an indignant sound. "It's not _my_ fault my hearing is so good! Sometimes I hear things I don't even want to hear... anyways, I'm here to give you a little help... or something that you _might_ consider help, considering on your attitude."

Xena nodded sharply. "On with it, then!"

"I'm just trying to help..." Zuzure said defensively. "Well, I heard that Rose—you know that Roselia?—has a major crush on Ford, and I think he knows about it, but you know... earlier today, Rose confessed... I think."

Xena blinked. She had seen Rose yesterday, when Ford was looking after his amaryllises. She hadn't seen Ford or Rose this entire day so far—well, she had been with Ria most of the time.

"When Ford rejected her, Rose—I think she started crying. Her voice sounded wobbly and choked. She asked why not. It's either because Ford was tired of her or was saying the truth, but he said he liked someone already."

"_What_?!"

"Xena, calm down. He could have been saying that to get Rose off his tail... does he even _have_ a tail?" Zuzure looked admiringly at her own zigzag tail with a blue sphere at the end. "Well, whatever. It was just something I heard today."

Xena controlled herself from releasing all her anger. "Is that all?"

Zuzure nodded. "Yep, that's all!"

So... maybe the Azumarill wasn't so bad after all. "All right... thank you, Zuzure." She couldn't quite believe she was saying that, either.

"Oh... um, you're welcome." It was as if the Aqua Rabbit Pokemon hadn't been expecting that—she probably _hadn't_, judging by how Xena always had been giving her snarky remarks in the past.

Xena felt that she and Zuzure would be able to get along just fine in the future, but right now, she had run off already, searching for the Frogadier.

After all, she just _needed_ to know who he liked.


	5. Chapter 5

Maybe Xena just was pissy. Maybe Xena just didn't want to admit the fact that she, too, was flawed. Maybe Xena just wanted to think herself highly among others. Maybe Xena just had too much time on her hands. Maybe Xena was a "it's either hate or love" type of person. Maybe...

"Hello? Xena, are you all right?"

...Well, maybe a lot of things. But now she was just gawking in front of her, disbelieving the kindness overload that was shoved in her face.

"Xena?"

"Er." Xena coughed, straightening her back a little. "Yeah?"

Edolie the Flygon blinked at Xena, before smiling. "For a moment I thought you had fainted."

Remember how Xena said she hated this Flygon?

Well, she took that _all_ back now.

"I didn't faint. I was just... thinking." It was the truth. She _had_ been thinking. Well... she had no idea why she had gone to Edolie to ask for advice about Ford. Maybe it was because Zuzure had first proven her wrong about that whole complaining thing anyway?

"Well... I see. In any case, I only know a bit about Rose." Edolie gave a halfhearted smile. "But that bit is probably a very important bit to you. Rose has known Ford for a couple of months. Maybe four or five. She likes him—a lot, you know—and has tried to get his attention, but Ford just doesn't like her. It might be because she's a Grass-type, or her personality is one to avoid, or she's just plain out irritating. I don't know."

"And?" Xena was looking for more information. "His crush?"

"Definitely not Rose," Edolie laughed. "Look—I'm not too sure on this info, and I'm sure Zuzure would have been able to help you more. But you know, Ford's an old childhood friend of mine, so I'll talk to him later and see if I can find anything out."

"He's your childhood friend?"

"A touchy subject, but yes," Edolie replied, smiling slightly. "We've lost contact for a bit, so I wonder how much he's changed already? The last time I saw him, I was still a Vibrava, you know."

"_That_ long?" Xena blinked at the amount of time Edolie and Ford had lost contact—how did they even _do_ that? And then Xena found herself asking a stupid question. "Did you ever like him?"

Edolie blinked. "If you're talking about romantically wise... no, never. I _loved_ him as a friend, but no, not romantically wise. Never. He had enough females pining over him, anyway."

Xena stared slightly. "What the... so I'm not weird? Why do a lot of them like him?"

"Because of his attitude and personality, probably." Edolie shrugged. "Most of them were captivated by that. Even as a Froakie, of course. I was pretty puzzled back then. But seeing as how I've matured, I can probably tell why already..."

"So I'm not the only one."

"You can bet there are tons others apart from Rose."

"Rivals." Xena clenched her teeth, thinking pleasantly how she would rip them apart, one by one. However, with that many crushes, was it safe to assume the the Frogadier might like one of them? Nah... Ford could like anyone under the sun. "Thank you very much, Edolie. You've been of a great help."

"No problem, Xena." Edolie beamed. "If I can find out anything else, I'll tell you for sure."

Being stupid again, Xena decided to think the impossible. "Would it be possible if... he liked... _you_?"

"_No_!"

The sudden reply shocked Xena, and the Fox Pokemon watched the Flygon stabilize her breath.

Edolie exhaled. "I'm sorry... it's just that... there's no way he'd like me in return, Xena. The reason why we lost contact is... troublesome. He's _shunned_ me, Xena. Shunning me means that he doesn't want to talk to me. I... well, I guess I was hoping he might... _not_ shun me anymore, and that's why I'm going to try and talk to him."

Xena looked sympathetically at her. "What happened, if I may know?"

Edolie looked at the floor for a moment. "No... I don't think I'm prepared to let anyone know, Xena."

* * *

_So something's happened between Ford and Edolie.  
_

Xena now knew that, but Edolie looked sad, miserable, melancholic, maybe a hint of _depression_. It was impossible. It sounded as if something horrible had happened, and Ford either hated Edolie now, or... avoided her for some other reason.

But... Ford wasn't so cold.

She had tried looking for Zuzure, but the Azumarill was busy currently, at the bazaar, learning the latest juicy gossip. She wasn't sure if she wanted to talk to Ria, who might not be able to help her much. She understood her best friend was trying to help, but... well, it was hard for her to understand how she was trying to help.

So she headed over to Ford, the next thing she decided to do.

Well, maybe she was just lost in her thoughts, because she nearly stepped on a certain patch of amaryllises.

"Xena!"

The familiar voice rang out, causing Xena to instinctively whirl around, nearly lose her footing, and took a while to adjust herself. She saw the Frogadier hop over, panicked. "Oh, uh, hi, Ford!"

"My amaryllises... nearly destroyed... by you.. again."

"Well, _sorry_ you put them in such a vulnerable place..." Xena snapped sarcastically, rolling her eyes. She had mastered the ability not to stutter while he was around anymore. "Why would you put them here?"

"Why shouldn't I put them here?"

"You're avoiding the question..." Xena dared to add, "And you know it!" but stopped herself.

"Well, amaryllises are mostly for show, aren't they? What's the point if they can't be seen by everyone?" Ford pointed out. "Plus, I didn't see you yesterday, you know, Xena. Did something happen?"

She should have known he would have asked that. But she wasn't expecting it. "I was—uh—chatting with Edolie?" The questioning tone at the end was a dead giveaway, but Ford seemed to sucked up to the name "Edolie" then he probably didn't even notice.

The Frogadier pushed Xena away from the amaryllises, checking if they were all right, at the same time asking, "Edolie, the Flygon?"

_Best to act dumb now._ "Yes, the Flygon—do you know her, possibly?"

"She was... an old friend." Ford pretended to be immersed with his amaryllises.

Xena seized the opportunity to learn more. She was curious, by nature, of course. Even if it didn't help her in any way, it would ease her itching curiosity. "An old friend? Did something happen?"

"In a way... yes." Before Xena could ask more questions, Ford beat her to it. "What did she say?"

"Well... I... uhm, mentioned you to her, and she told me how a lot of females were pining over you... or something."

"And?"

"A-And that she never liked you... _romantically_."

"Why would she tell you that?"

_Oh shit. _"Oh, um, since she was an old friend, I... uh... asked her."

"Whether or not she liked me."

_I'm in so much shit._ "Yeah."

Luckily, Ford didn't seem to bother. "Well, whatever. Do you want to go to the creek now?"


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** And so, my darling readers, I apologize for being gone for so long. I do have my reasons though, and from here on, it's safe to expect regular updates again. Enjoy!

* * *

Well, Xena found out it may not be the best while she was still trying to figure out who Ford liked (if he even liked someone, he could have just told Rose that to get her to buzz off) and still hang out with him, because she was utterly, 100%, distracted. She nearly fell into the creek (again) but there was an ugly Stunfisk inside which... well, magically stopped her fall. Maybe it was her dislike for ugly things.

Picking up a random stone, bumpy and uneven, the Braixen flung it into the creek. The Frogadier watched her, and the ripple that followed after the sunken stone. Xena sat down next to him and placed her paws on her knees.

"Say, Ford, are you going to evolve?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"It's just that you seem to have the potential to evolve but you haven't yet."

"I suppose I want to linger in this form a bit more before I do."

Xena picked up a random twig and bit into it. "Why would you want to linger in that form? Greninja is much stronger than Frogadier, and can learn a lot more moves! Plus, if you learn any Dark-type moves, the power will be greater."

"I understand that, but... I suppose it's awkward."

"Hmm?"

"You know, when I evolved from a Froakie into a Frogadier, when I came home from my training—which led to my evolution—everyone was pretty shocked and it was weird telling them who I was and things like that, and it was hard for them to get used to it. I suppose I'm... not ready for that again, because I know their reactions. Besides, it's not proper respect to evolve into your final evolution until you're fifteen or older."

Xena gawked at him sideways. "You _care_ about proper respect, Ford? Geez... As if _anyone_ cares about that... _thing_... these days. Even I don't. Besides, I evolved when my family was around me. It was only after I evolved that I started leaving home for the day and coming home at night."

Ford shrugged. "You're still close to them?"

"Um... yeah. My parents worry like heck when I'm out, and I don't mean to worry them, but I don't feel like staying at home and burning wood for training. It gets boring. Before I evolved, I never had any friends, not even Ria, because I never went out. I would rather stick with my family then, you see. After I evolved, I went exploring outside—something I could rarely do before I evolved, and when I did do that, it wasn't very far—and I met Ria, who was already a Vileplume. Proper respect doesn't matter for her because she doesn't live with her parents—she just sits in the tall grass at night and sleeps and chases others away by releasing awful-smelling gases as she sleeps—but she does use her parent's house sometimes, I suppose... they let her in, but she rarely comes by, and prefers to stay out. She lives with her younger brother in the wild. I met her by this creek and we became fast friends really fast and I came out of the house more often, and I met more people. I didn't like them all, though." Xena picked up a stone with a pattern on it made by erosion and admired it.

"And even after all that, your parents _still_ worry about you?"

"Yeah—they think outside is 'dangerous' and all that stuff, but they can't exactly stop me from going out. Once a Pokemon reaches the age of ten, they're dubbed strong enough to withstand dangers of the outside world. But they still worry I'll get kidnapped, or something—especially after the Viper incident, I suppose... What about you? Why do _you_ stay outside? If it's just to take care of your precious amaryllises, then I'll have to laugh at you."

"My parents chased me out of the house."

Xena dropped the pretty stone and gaped at him—he seemed to be giving her a lot of shocks that day. "_What_?"

Ford shrugged. "After I became ten—which was after I evolved, just so you know—they just kicked me out and told me I could only come back at night. They felt like pampering my younger sister, who still hasn't evolved yet, and didn't want my presence to be 'disturbing' them. I picked up planting flowers as a result of that."

"That's _horrible_!"

"I've grown used to it."

"Why do you plant amaryllises, though? There are tons of other pretty flowers to plant..."

"You don't find amaryllises pretty?"

"_No_—they're my favorite flowers! But you don't find any other flower pretty? Out of all the other flowers, why the amaryllis?"

"It was just convenient—there were a bunch growing in my garden, so I took some of them."

"_Thief_!"

"You're not one to talk."

"How would you know? It's not like I've stolen anything in particular yet. I just have a good ability to steal, but that doesn't mean I _have_ stolen!"

"I wasn't technically being a thief, anyway. They're in _my_ garden so they're _my_ amaryllises, doesn't it make any sense? Besides, if my parents allowed me to, then no, it can't be classified as 'stealing', then," Ford reasoned.

Xena sighed, tilting her head sideways, picking up another rock to throw it into the creek. "I suppose you're right..."

Ford snorted slightly. "It's getting late—you're not going home?"

The Braixen turned to look at him, and didn't turn away again like the other times. "I'm not going home until _you_ go home, because you just told me you've been kicked out of the house, and don't you feel lonely? They don't care about what time I come back, anyway! They let me roam as much as I what, though they worry—"

"See? They're worrying. They _do_ care about what time you come back. On the other hand, they _want_ me out of the house until midnight—"

"_Midnight_?!"

"Shh. Keep quiet. And anyway, I have my own things I might like to do alone."

Xena sniffed, looking up at the sky. It was around eight. "Well, I'm definitely not leaving, especially if you're by yourself for four hours! I don't care if you have things you'd prefer to do alone; you can do them with me if you're desperate!"

Ford shook his head. "As I said, I'd prefer to do them alone. Not even with you."

That one actually hurt. "You do some stuff without me? I mean, you'd _rather_ do something stuff _without_ me? That's plain mean. What can one enjoy by themselves? If there's some magical activity, do inform me. I'd like to know."

"Showering?"

"You're going to _shower_?" Xena stared at him blankly.

"Hm... not really. Just splashing in the creek for no reason and hanging out in the water until midnight. You don't like water, do you? That's why I said I prefer to do them myself."

"So... you prefer to do it by yourself because I don't like it. If it were another Water-type, would you allow it to stay?"

"No, anyway. It'd be late and they'd be tired," Ford responded. "But they could hang slightly longer, until ten, maybe? It depends on their age, too. The thing I'm saying is, you're a Fire-type, who absolutely hates water, and Pokemon like you should have early sleep."

_He isn't chasing me away just because he doesn't want me, right..?_

Xena rolled her eyes at him, but said nothing.

_Ugh! I wish I was a Delphox, and be a Psychic-type, so I could look into his mind!_

"Well, I don't care if you're gonna hang in the creek, then you might as well do something else, right?" Xena said stubbornly, looking across the creek, a large smile curving her lips. "Say, have you ever been to the other side of the creek before?"

"No... have you? Apparently it's dangerous."

"Not really! I've been there before, it's only a couple of Houndoom that's there." Xena stood up. "But it's really pretty, I have to admit. I'll take you over there! C'mon, it's not dangerous—especially for a Water-type like you!"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Xena—"

"It's fine!" Xena shushed him. "Just stay by me and you'll be fine—I've gone there tons of times before, with Ria!"

She grabbed his hand and darted off.


End file.
